Preferences
by Just-Another-Fangirl-Like-You
Summary: Draco Malfoy has been forced to return to Hogwarts after the war. He's not too upset - the other option was Azkaban. However, new classes to unite the Wizarding world with the Muggle world have started, and Malfoy finds himself in a strange situation, with none other than Harry Potter by his side. [Eventual Drarry, Rating T (may change)]
1. Chapter 1

**This will be my first multi-chapter fic, so I decided to stick with something I know quite well and can quote word for word. Yes, I am that sad. **

**I've been playing with this idea for a while, but I've never written it down before. Anyways, I hope you enjoy.  
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**_P.S - I don't have a beta reader. Please ignore all grammar/spelling mistakes. I apologize._**

**_P.P.S - I do not own anything you recognise. I only own the new teacher, and he is loosely based off a teacher I have been taught by._  
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><p>Draco Malfoy didn't protest when he saw the subjects he had been given on the parchment. He hadn't wanted to return to Hogwarts at all, but it was far better than a cell in Azkaban. He knew which he preferred. He sat at the far end of the 'returners' table, with the Ravenclaws next to him, then Hufflepuff and finally Gryffindor on the end. He was one of three returning Slytherins, the others being Pansy Parkinson and Blaise Zabini, both in the same situation as him. Neither had arrived for breakfast yet, but then again, it was uncharacteristically early for himself to be awake. Only Professor McGonagall sat at the teacher's table, buttering a slice of toast heavily. He caught her eye accidentally and quickly averted his gaze to the table in front of him. He could feel the mark on his arm burning with shame. He couldn't even look the new headmistress in the eye, for Merlin's sake!<p>

He could feel his cheeks burning as he stood up to leave. He could feel McGonagall's eyes trained to the back of his head as he walked out, keeping his head down and out of the way of everyone else. He thought about heading straight to the returners common room, a room where every returner had their dorms and shared like one house would, but then decided against it. He was sick of the glares. Instead, he left the castle and walked down to the lake, deciding to pass the time swotting up on his new subjects.

And how new they were! On the list now included Muggle Cookery, Computing and Care of Non-Magical Creatures. Draco examined his new timetable with bored eyes. He had Care of Non-Magical Creatures first, taught by a teacher he'd never heard of before – Professor Sim. He wondered what that would entail... He'd looked after owls and cats before, but they all came from the Magical Menagerie and all contained some form of magic, even if it was only slight. "Ah well," he sighed to himself, "I won't have long to wait."

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><p>When Draco arrived at his first class, he was surprised that there wasn't an animal in sight. Only ten seventh years had arrived to take this particular subject, which included Blaise, Pansy, Hermione, Ron and Harry. On arrival, he smiled weakly to Blaise and then focused on the teacher. Professor Sim was a tall man with white thinning hair and muggle clothes. Draco shivered in his presence – he sensed that this man was not to be messed with, even with his less than impressive set of clothes consisting of jeans and a t-shirt.<p>

"Morning class," he called amongst them. He had a Scottish accent with a slight Australian twist. Draco guessed that he had lived there for some time. "Some rules of my class – no magic unless specified by myself, you do not speak over me unless it is an absolute emergency, and you will raise your hand if you need to ask a question, or should you wish to answer a question. Have I made myself absolutely clear?" There was something about the way he spoke – in quiet yet stern tones – that made everyone agree with him. There were a few nods around the group but nobody spoke. "Now, I don't know any of you, so you have a chance to impress me with your work, free from prejudice." Draco sighed at this, it was clear this teacher was aware of some people's involvement in the war. "There will be no favoritism, which means Harry isn't my automatic best buddy just because he did some stuff." Everyone looked relatively confused at this. Usually, the boy who lived was talked up so that it made him sound wonderful. This teacher didn't seem to care. Harry looked... relieved? Draco watched his features immediately relax, not having to live up to everyone's expectations for once.

Draco found the lesson unusually interesting. The professor had promised a surprise at the end of the lesson if they were good, so all students seemed eager to work. He had issued them with a book about dogs, a muggle pet with no magical qualities whatsoever. However, Draco was enthralled by the many different types you could get. There were small dogs, like Terriers or Chihuahuas, medium dogs, such as Labradors and Spaniels, and then big dogs, like Great Danes and St Bernard's. And the section on puppies made him melt on the spot. There were pictures of little furballs with eyes half closed with their mothers and pictures of older puppies playing with each other, as well as sleeping together. He tried not to show this as he sat at the back of the classroom, though Pansy was evidently ecstatic. She was cooing at the still images rather loudly and pushing her book into Blaise's face as if he wasn't on the same page as her.

The lesson seemed to pass by too quickly, and it was too soon that Professor Sim asked them to pack away. "Over the coming weeks," Professor Sim called above the noise, "You will be given an assignment. You have been put into pairs." Draco scanned the room at that point, wondering who would be working with him for the assignment. "It will include looking after a pet, probably a dog or other domestic animal. Neither of the pair will attend classes for that week." Hermione's hand shot up.  
>"Sir, what type of assignment is it?" she asked curiously.<br>"Yeah, what's the catch?" Ron said, "It's not everyday a teacher lets us have a week out of class!"  
>"The catch is..." Sim had a mischievous glint in his eye, "One of the pair will be the pet."<p>

There were looks of astonishment around the classroom. Draco paled significantly. "Don't look at me like that, it was McGonagall's idea." he said plainly, "It's going to be a learning experience for everyone."  
>"Who are we paired with?" a Ravenclaw asked.<br>"I have the list here." he waved a piece of parchment in the air. "The first pair should wait behind – their assignment starts today."  
>"And the first pair is...?" Ron asked impatiently.<br>"Harry Potter," there were strange looks around the classroom. "and Draco Malfoy."


	2. Chapter 2

**Have no fear, an update is here! I've decided to update every Sunday at least, and maybe throughout the week depending on life. **

**Thank you to everyone who has already followed, favourited and reviewed this fic :3 They all mean so much to me!**

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><p>Harry glanced at Draco from across the room. Draco gulped nervously as people started to whisper around him. Some of them were merely expressing jealousy because he was paired with Harry, others were whispering threats against the former-deatheater. "Class dismissed!" Professor Sim called, and the whole class filed out, leaving Harry and Draco standing by the front desk. Draco tried to smile slightly at Harry, but the other boy wasn't looking. He was too busy eying a vial on the desk that was filled with some sort of black shimmering liquid. "Is that the potion?" he said as soon as the door was closed.<br>"Indeed, Mr Potter," Sim replied, "Now which one is to go first?" The pair looked at him blankly.  
>"Well, I-" Draco began to protest, but he was cut short.<br>"Thank you for volunteering, Mr Malfoy." Sim smiled, making it clear that he wasn't to be argued with. "A few things first though. Harry will be your master – he will be in charge of training, exercising and feeding you. Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately, you'll not fully remember yourself, yet I'm not one hundred percent about how much you will and will not remember."  
>"I guess it's a good thing that I won't remember much," Draco almost joked, "It's not like Potter and I have had a great history together."<br>"The past is behind you, gentlemen, this is a chance for new friendships," Professor Sim said knowingly, as if he'd paired them together for a reason.  
>"Can I take the potion now?" Draco asked, gesturing to the vial on the desk. Secretly, he couldn't wait to forget everything, regardless of the cost. He would never admit it, but he was sick of the nightmares – well, memories really.<br>"Of course you may," was the reply, and the vial was pressed into his hand. Shaking slightly, he pulled out the stopper, raised it to his lips, and downed it before he could change his mind.

He looked at Harry and shrugged, placing the vial back on the desk. And then he felt it. He felt a pleasant heat burning through his veins, warming him from head to toe. "Quite nice, actually," he grinned, but it was short lived. The heat grew hotter and hotter until it scorched, and suddenly the experience became not-so-nice after all. Harry watched in horror as Draco collapsed to the floor and began to shrink until he couldn't be seen under his robes. And then – nothing. The lump under pile of clothes seemed to move slightly, but it was the only reminder that a minute ago, a fully grown Draco had been standing there.  
>"D-Draco?" Harry said tentatively, approaching the bundle with care. The last thing he wanted was his hand bitten off by a startled Draco. Slowly, he lifted the Slytherin's robes until they no longer covered the little ball of fur, complete with a wagging tail and floppy ears.<p>

Harry could not resist to let out an 'aww'. Standing where Draco once stood was a pure white puppy with curly haired ears and fluffy legs. The only mark on him was a dark patch on his left front leg. He looked to Harry with bright blue eyes, before trotting towards him and jumping up. On his hind legs, he barely reached Harry's knees. "You are just too cute, Draco," Harry laughed, crouching down and letting the puppy Draco lick his face.  
>"Here's his collar, Harry," Professor Sim handed him a green collar with real diamonds embedded into it.<br>"How fitting," Harry showed it to the puppy. "Do you like it?" Draco just danced excitedly in response. Quickly, Harry snapped the collar on around the puppy's neck before he had a chance to object. Draco stopped and tried to look at the collar, spinning in circles until he was dizzy.  
>"I have everything you need to take care of Draco in my office, I'll have a house elf take it to your room." Sim said, almost smiling. "Here's his lead." The lead was almost identical to the collar.<br>"Thanks, sir," Harry took it from him and clipped it onto Draco. "Let's go, puppy," he grinned, leading the puppy out of the door.

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><p>Now that Harry had the puppy, he wasn't too sure what to do with himself. Draco pulled an awful lot, trying to sniff every single nook and cranny in the vain hope that someone had dropped something tasty. "Malfoy, I would greatly appreciate it if you didn't keep trying to pull my shoulder out of it's socket, thank you very much!" Harry half joked, only to feel guilty when the bundle of white fur looked at him as if he'd been wounded. "Don't look at me like that!" Harry pouted. Draco grinned a puppy grin and jumped up at Harry, licking his hand. Harry yawned and the pup copied him. "Right, sleepy time for you, mister," Harry picked him up and carried him back to the dorm.<p>

Once they were in Harry's room, he placed the puppy on the floor and went rooting in a pile of bags that had been dumped by his bed. From the pile, he pulled out a soft bed with a matching cushion and various different toys, spreading them around the room. "There's no chance of you getting bored now, eh?" Harry grinned, watching the puppy pick up a teddy and drag it to his bed. Draco yawned again, lay down and closed his eyes. Harry kicked off his shoes and climbed into his own bed, despite not really wanting to sleep. He hadn't slept properly since the war, despite Mrs Weasley's worrying. He tried to rid his head of everything, curling up beneath the duvet. He'd just closed his eyes when he felt the bed shift slightly. Draco stood above him, head cocked to one side. "No, Draco, your bed is down there!" Harry lifted the puppy off. He scrunched his eyes tight and tried to ignore the whimpering puppy on the floor beside him. "Fine, Draco, but just this once," Harry patted the bed and a sleepy Draco jumped up and rested his head on the pillow next to Harry's head. "G'night, pup," Harry stroked him. The puppy just closed it's eyes and smiled as it drifted off to sleep. Harry wasn't far behind it.

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><p>Four hours later, Harry sat bolt upright in bed, breathing heavily. Sweat was dripping from his brow as he tried to sort through what was real and what was nightmare. But he couldn't. Because his nightmares weren't just a figment of his imagination – they were memories. Sirius's death, merged with the battle and losing so much. Harry found it very difficult to believe that any of it was really worth it. He'd lost everything that mattered to him. He hadn't realised he was crying until something licked his face. Draco stared at him, eyes wide. "Hey pup," Harry forced a smile, stroking the dog fondly. He wasn't sure how long the pup had been watching him, but he suddenly felt happier with the unconditional love of the fluffball. Draco, without any memory of their past, didn't care if he hadn't managed to save those he cared for, he just cared for Harry and if Harry was upset, he wanted to make it better. Harry dried his eyes on his sleeve and slipped his glasses on. "Shall we go and get some lunch?"<p>

It turned out that they'd both slept through lunch. Draco looked less than impressed by this fact. "You know, I have a bag of dog food in my room," Harry grinned slyly, "You could always eat that..." Draco pulled a face. "It's okay, we'll just go to the kitchen." Draco looked rather confused for a minute, before following Harry along the corridor and down a set of stairs. If Draco was confused before, he was even more so when Harry tickled a pear in a portrait. Harry just winked at the puppy when the portrait swung open to reveal the kitchen.

They were greeted by an excited looking Kreacher. "Ah, Master Harry had come to visit Kreacher!" the house elf exclaimed rather happily.  
>"Hi Kreacher," Harry smiled to his elf, "Could you possibly russle us up some lunch?"<br>"Of course, Master Harry, what would you like?" Kreacher asked.  
>"Er, anything for me.. And for the dog," Harry thought for a minute, "Your finest meat," Draco licked his lips in approval. Five minutes later, Harry and Draco were led to a small table set up in the corner of the kitchen. A steaming plate of cottage pie sat on one place mat, and on the other sat a plate of what looked like beef trimmings. Draco didn't seem to care – he jumped up onto the chair and scoffed the contents of the plate, barely stopping to chew. "Oh Draco, I wish you could stay a puppy forever, you're just too cute," Harry sighed as he sat down to his own food, occasionally feeding bits of meat and potato to the pup at his feet.<p> 


End file.
